


take my hand and take my heart

by hope27



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-22
Updated: 2013-07-22
Packaged: 2017-12-20 23:52:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/893368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hope27/pseuds/hope27
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For Challenge Three of SummerofOlicity on tumblr.  The prompt was touch.  </p><p>Felicity catalogues all the times she and Oliver touch.</p>
            </blockquote>





	take my hand and take my heart

The first time Oliver Queen touched her, it was a mere brush of fingertips as he carefully handed her a black arrow in her small office of the Queen Consolidated IT department. Charm oozed out of every word he spoke and her suspicions were roused but she let herself enjoy the attention all the same.

Those blue eyes and rogue charm worked amazingly well for him. 

Of course, she could see right through his flimsy excuses, but for some reason, she felt she could trust him - his colorful history aside. There was something in his eyes; something in the way he held himself that told her there was more to this man than met the eye.

His softly spoken praise of “You’re remarkable, Felicity Smoak,” sealed the deal.

She, Felicity Smoak, was smitten with Oliver Queen. This could not be good.

***

Oliver was unconscious the second time they touched - his prone figure slumped against her as she tried in vain to move him into the abandoned warehouse he had directed her to before passing out in her backseat. A gunshot wound to his shoulder oozed blood and she could feel how shallow his breaths were against her skin. She acted quickly, leaning him against her car door and running to get help. 

Her heart was racing in her chest as Mr. Diggle placed him on the cold metal table in the basement of the warehouse. Fear pounded in her veins while confusion and awe muddled her thoughts. Slowly puzzle pieces began fitting together at the same time that he was quickly falling apart.

His skin was hot under her touch as she tightly pressed the gauze against the gunshot wound on his shoulder to staunch the bleeding just like Mr. Diggle had instructed her. She could hear her own blood rushing through her ears and she closed her eyes to count to ten and say a prayer for him to live.

Even though things were so much more complicated now, she still found herself drawn to him. Maybe now more than ever. He was a mystery she wanted to solve. 

The moment he opened his blue eyes, and blearily blinked up at her, she took her first deep breath of the night. The site of his half smile sending tendrils of emotion through her weary body.

Later, as he held out his hand to her in thanks for saving his life, she wondered briefly if agreeing to help him would only end up getting her heart hurt in the end. 

She did it anyway.

The moment her hand slipped into his, she felt his strength and smiled at the way her hand fit perfectly in his.

***

When she ended up with a bomb collar strapped to her neck, she didn’t hesitate to reach out to him. Her hand found his arm almost instinctively, knowing he would help her. 

The fear in his eyes shocked her. Oliver Queen truly cared about her. Not that she thought he was heartless, but the depth of that concern surprised her.

So when he locked eyes with her, promising her with a look that he would fix this, she believed him whole-heartedly. 

As she let go of his arm, her fingers brushed against his while he was backing away. He glanced at her once more before turning and running.

She didn’t have time to dwell on that look because the next think she knew his voice was in her ear and he needed her help.

“Talk to me, Felicity.” 

And she did.

***

The next time he truly touched her was after brush with his crazy ex-girlfriend. Of course, those were Diggle’s words, not hers, but she agreed with them completely now.

Her hands were tied behind her back, feet bound, and her own scarf a gag in her mouth. Her head ached from where Helena had hit her with the blunt side of her crossbow. She could feel the tear tracks drying on her face and groaned at the sudden movement to try to wipe them on her sleeve. Her head throbbed and so instead, she laid it back down on the carpet and hoped someone would come soon.

She waited, fear mounting every time she heard a noise from the hallway. The feeling of helplessness was aggravating, and she felt the pin prick of tears as the hours ticked by. She wondered how long it would take for Oliver to check his messages, trying not to let herself be angry with him for not answering his phone in the first place.

When she heard footsteps and Oliver’s frantic voice call out her name, she sagged in relief. Over the hours she’d been able to loosen the gag and was able to answer him, her voice shakier than she would have liked.

He was by her side in milliseconds, his fingers working quickly to unbind her feet and then her hands.

The next thing she knew she was being pulled up, strong hands cupping her face as he stared down at her with more concern and worry than she expected. His gaze was riddled with guilt and she found herself reaching up to cover his hand that rested against her cheek.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, answering his question as he began to help her to her feet before vaulting back at the sound of approaching footsteps, knife in hand to defend them.

She peeked over the edge of the desk as Oliver deflated, seeing Diggle standing there with arms raised in surrender.

Oliver quickly helped her to her feet, her hand grasping his offered arm as he talked to Diggle.

As she apologized for finding the information for Helena, she held his arm tightly without realizing it - her fingers bunched in his jacket refusing to let go.

His words of absolution ghosted over her and she sighed, still feeling as if she had failed somehow.

She held on to him until he started to leave, needing to go after Helena. Knowing she couldn’t stop him - shouldn’t stop him - she let her hand slip from his jacket and then he was gone.

***

Two weeks later, they found themselves working the case of a man who had decided to take out what he considered to be the bad seeds of the Glades.

Felicity found herself questioning her skills and abilities after more than one man died on a screen in front of her as she tried desperately to find their location. Between Oliver’s snapping and the sound of gunshots ricocheting in her ears, her resolve had broken and Oliver found her slowly turning one of his green arrows over and over in her hands.

The weight of this secret was becoming heavier every week, but she knew she couldn’t turn back now; nor did she want to. It was the idea of having to keep everything a secret from anyone close to her that had her questioning her decisions.

What if one day she found someone she wanted to be with? What if one day, she didn’t want to lie to her friends at work anymore? What if one day it became too much?

He said nothing to her concerns then, but she watched as his shoulders fell and his eyes glazed over - the telltale signs of him retreating into his own memories and nightmares.

Two days later when they finally caught the man, she heard him next to her and looked up to see honest blue eyes staring back at her.

Before she knew it, the warm and steady weight of his hand was on her shoulder. Her heart fluttered in her chest as her eyes became half-lidded, turning her head away from him to hide the affect he had upon her. His words ghosted over her and wrapped around her.

“If you need to tell someone about your day, you can tell me.”

His hand squeezed her shoulder, and she dropped her head, failing to hide the smile that blossomed on her lips.

The weight of his hand and his words stayed with her long after he walked away.

***

The next few touches were brief and work related.  Fingers brushed together as they handed off laptops or thumb drives.  Her hands binding his wounds, refusing to let her fingers linger over his tanned skin or wander to the numerous tattoos and scars that littered his chest and back.

They were preparing for another undercover operation - this time, she was the one going in the line of fire. She watched and held her breath when his hand caressed her arm as he gave her one more chance to back out, and then with a sigh, reassured her he would be right outside. 

She told herself it was nothing. It meant nothing. It was a touch of comfort; of reassurance. Despite the intense look in his eyes and the way she felt his gaze follow her as she walked into the underground casino, she refused to let herself believe it was anything more. Because it wasn’t.

She pushed down the feelings fluttering inside her, knowing that if they were going to work together, she needed to stop this crush before she got hurt.

They were co-worker. Friends.  That’s it.  

Only, she was pretty sure, it was too late to turn off her feelings.

***

Being too many floors up to count in an elevator shaft with Oliver was nothing compared to the feeling of him putting his arms around her; holding him tightly to her in order to swing them across the plunging drop.

She was already paralyzed from her fear of heights and her filter was nonexistent, so when she stated that she imagined this happening under different circumstances, she blushed crimson and tried to cover.

But his eyes twinkled and then turned darker, pupils dilating briefly as he looked at her. And then the moment was over and he was back to business.

She grasped him tightly as he counted down and slammed her eyes shut as he swung them out and over to the other side.

The moment, he let her go, she felt off-balance all over again and had to hold herself back from reaching out to him again.

Things didn’t go as smoothly as they would have liked, and by the time she was walking slowly out of Merlyn Global Headquarters, her heart was hammering in her chest for reasons far beyond attraction to her boss.

As she pushed against the glass doors, she couldn’t help but look back when she felt his eyes on her. The apology written across his face; the intense relief that shone in his eyes caught her breath.

The ride back to the Foundry was silent and when he returned, he said nothing. Instead, he laid both hands on her shoulders and squeezed them tightly. A second later, she felt his head come to rest atop hers, and a kiss ghost over her hair. 

Felicity closed her eyes, focused on breathing and not the emptiness she felt when his hands fell away.

***

The first time they hugged, it was the night half the Glades collapsed. 

Felicity made her way through the rubble and out of the Verdant’s basement only to find a live wire running across the hood of her car. Knowing there was no way she could go anywhere near it, she parked herself on the steps just outside the back entrance, pulling out her phone. The comms had gone down as she’d made her way out of the basement. And from the busy signal she kept getting every time she tried to dial a number, the cell phone towers were jammed or completely down; no service was going in or out of the Glades. 

So she waited, hoping and praying that Oliver or someone would come find her.

She watched and listened as screams and sirens echoed through the night air sending shivers down her spine. She ached to help; couldn’t stop the pain that blossomed deep within her as she thought about the people suffering. But she couldn’t make her feet move. Her body trembled as she replayed the night over and over in her head.

Oliver’s pleas over the comms echoed in her ears. Tommy...

Tears formed in her eyes and she blinked them away until she heard the sound of a motorcycle engine racing down the alleyway towards her.

Jumping up, she squinted through her cracked glasses and relief flooded her chest as she watched Oliver pull up near her and jump off the bike.

His shoulders sagged and she could tell he was injured by the dark stains on his jacket. Without thinking, she just reacted. 

She was running towards him before she could stop herself and she vaulted herself into his arms, pressing her face into the crook of his neck, his stubble scrapping her forehead. A rugged breath left his lips and she felt him sag against her until she wasn’t sure who was holding who up. 

They stayed like that for minutes, his hands winding around her back and gripping her tightly as if she was his lifeline to this world.

She turned her head and listened to the beating of his heart, and tried to ignore the way his hands moved to her hair and the feel of his breath trailing over her shoulder.

This was about surviving and comfort. That was all. Survival and comfort. 

***

Their first undercover operation after the fall of the Glades involved them posing as a couple at a charity gala to help rebuild the damaged parts of the city.   
Felicity found herself constantly being touched by Oliver; his hands everywhere and anywhere - trailing over her shoulder, playing with her hair, pressing gently against her back or ghosting over her temple.

The sensations that rippled through her were almost more than she could handle. 

This was all for show; these touches and caresses - nothing more than a cover.

Knowing that truth was almost more than she could take.

At one point, his hand trailed down her arm to find her fingers before knotting together with them.

A sharp inhale escaped her and she closed her eyes, biting down on the inside of her cheeks to get her emotions back in check.

When she reopened her eyes, she found blue ones staring down at her in confusion. And then they widened in surprise and Felicity knew he could see everything in her eyes. He could see the effect all of this was having on her and she felt her instinct to flee kick in.

As if reading her thoughts, he tightened his grip on her hand, refusing to let her run.

They didn’t speak a word about it the rest of the night, and she excused herself to go home the moment they returned to the Foundry, the feel of his hand in hers lingering throughout the night.

Her dreams were filled with him.

***

Felicity didn’t realize until three weeks later, that she wasn’t the only one affected by their touches.

The moment she realized this was after a particularly disappointing night on the streets for Oliver. Their target had slipped the radar, and since Diggle was home sick and Oliver had refused to let Felicity come out on this one, he’d had to cover every exit himself. There had been one too many and the man had gotten away.

His temper flared as he pounded down the metal steps and Felicity was on her feet in seconds, an apology on her lips but he waved it off as he headed toward the showers in the back.

It was then she noticed the blood trickling down his arm and ran to him, catching his good hand and spinning him around. She pulled up the sleeve on his jacket and glanced up at his face with worried eyes at the deep gash.

“I’m fine,” he grunted, but Felicity ignored him, pulling him over to the medical supplies and motioning for him to sit.

They said nothing as she cared for the cut - thankfully not deep enough to warrant stitches. 

When her fingers feathered over the bandage she placed on the cleaned wound, she felt him tense and looked up into his face.

The unmasked desire and need staring back at her took her breath away. Her heart dropped to her stomach and she swallowed as heat pooled low inside her.

Her breathing sped up and she had to look down to fight for control of her emotions.

Oliver was moving away from her before she could speak, but the look in his eyes was seared into her brain.

Her touch sparked something within him. She wasn’t the only one feeling things when they touched, and that thought made her smile.

***

The first time he kissed her was a week later. Another undercover op. Another night posing as a couple. 

Only this time, it felt different. Their touches lingered, fingers stoking flames between them as they held hands almost all night. Oliver caught her looking at their intwined hands more than once and she’d seen his lips quirk upwards whenever he did.

After they returned to the Foundry, Diggle left giving them both knowing looks, and Felicity began to gather her stuff.

She was halfway to the door when she felt a hand on her elbow and she turned.

His fingers rubbed circles against the sensitive skin of her arm, and she shuddered slightly at the contact. Oliver stared at her for a long time, his eyes sweeping over her face and then he sighed as if making a decision.

Before she could react, he placed a soft kiss against her lips. By the time she opened her eyes, he was gone, and she heard the sound of the shower from the bathroom.

She touched her fingers to her lips as she walked to her car, a smile on her face.

***

They didn’t talk about the kiss. But their touches lingered. Their looks intensified.   
They said nothing about any of it to each other.

Until one night when she heard a tapping on her bedroom window as she was getting ready for bed. 

She was surprised to find Oliver sitting on her small balcony, dressed in green leather, and quickly ushered him inside.

His hood obscured his face, but she could see the dark green paint smudged around his eyes. Black pupils blinked at her and she watched as he tossed his bow on to her bed without taking his eyes off her.

Swallowing, she pulled at her long t-shirt she usually wore to bed and bit down on her lower lip.

He took one step toward her before stopping.

His voice was deep and throaty when he spoke and it sent a shiver of pleasure running through her.

“What do you see when you look at me?”

The question threw her off momentarily and she crinkled her brow and tilted her head at him in confusion.

Then, it was as if a switch flipped and she understood what he was asking.

Straightening, she found courage surging through her as she began to speak.

“I see Oliver,” she whispered softly, taking a step towards him. “I see the hero too. I see a man trying to be everyone people want and expect him to be while hiding who he truly is.”

She watched as her words seeped into him, and the look in his eyes intensified. He took a few steps closer to her and her confidence soared, his hand reaching out and trailing fingers over the skin of her arm.

“I see you,” she stated softy, reaching up and pushing back the leather hood that concealed his face. “I see all of you.”

He was inches from her now, the smell of leather and night air wrapping around her, steadying her. Her hands stayed at his shoulder as she watched his eyes search her face, roaming from her eyes to her lips and back again.

Staring up at him, she murmured the next words, but the confidence in her voice was unmistakable.

Her eyes locked with his. “I love you. All of you.”

Felicity watched in awe as the last of his walls came tumbling down and he leaned down, his mouth slanting over hers in a soft, gentle kiss.

His mouth moved against hers slowly, achingly slowly, tasting and seeking. It wasn’t until she moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck that he deepened the kiss, his tongue sweeping into her mouth and claiming her as his own.

She accepted him eagerly and couldn’t help the bubbling happiness that rose within her.

His kiss sent bolts of electricity and excitement through her, overwhelming her with feelings of love and hunger and need.

She loved this man - had loved him for so long. 

***

The first time he touched her - truly touched her - she saw stars. 

When they said their vows, she felt the sparks as his fingers guided the ring on to her hand. Two intertwined arrows were engraved on the inside of the silver band. His matched hers. A secret message between them.

The touch of his lips sealed their vows and she felt as light as air; happiness surrounding her as he smiled at her, his whole face lit up with joy.

When the tiny fist of their baby boy wrapped his fingers around Oliver’s forefinger, Felicity watched her husband as he became entranced by the product of their love.

Twining her hand with his free one, she covered her son’s tiny fingers with her own and felt the strength of the bond between family. The simple touch of her son and her husband’s hands a comfort and strength she’d never known.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are lovely! Thank you for reading!


End file.
